A Willow in the Whispering Winds
by Stormshine100
Summary: This story was a collab I worked on with my friend, Willow in the Whispering Winds. She disappeared right around the time we finished the main characters, after telling us stories of being bullied. This story is dedicated to her, as I could not have done it without her. Edit: Willow is safe! She notified me that she had left FanFiction.
1. Chapter 1

**This story was a collab I worked on with my friend, Willow in the Whispering Winds. She disappeared right around the time we finished the main characters, right after she told us she was being bullied both verbally and physically in school. Her last contact with me was on February 24, 2018.**

 **This story is dedicated to her, as I could not have done it without her.**

* * *

 **Allegiances of WillowClan**

 **Leader:** Oakstar (tom, long black fur, sharp blue eyes, narcissistic and egotistic)

 **Deputy:** Cedarbranch (tom, short, dark gray fur, pale green eyes, kind but quiet)

 **Medicine cat:** Junipersong (she-cat, lithe tortoiseshell, dark amber eyes, cold and intimidating)

 **Warriors:**

Watershade (tom, white/gray/silver, blue eyes, quiet and a little sexist)

 _Apprentice: Diamondpaw_

Mapleclaw (she-cat, dark red tabby, fluffy tail, seducing and sly)

Slytooth (tom, cream and black fur, stub tail, amber eyes, cruel and outspoken, mean sense of humor)

 _Apprentice: Graypaw_

Deerstream (she-cat, light brown tabby, dark blue eyes, sweet and sensitive)

Sunfang (she-cat, golden tabby, black paws, amber eyes, calm and quiet)

Berrywhisker (she-cat, white fur, black flecks scattered all over fur, dark green eyes, rational and dedicated)

Flintshadow (tom, fluffy black fur, sharp amber eyes, cold and mean)

Voleslash (tom, short light brown fur, light blue eyes, conserved and calm)

Elmfleck (tom, short white fur, pale green eyes, quiet and creepy)

 _Apprentice: Swanpaw_

 **Apprentices:**

Swanpaw (she-cat, fluffy white fur, fluffy tail, amber eyes, energetic and bouncy)

Minnowpaw (she-cat, small but strong, silver and light gray tabby, fluffy tail, blue eyes, sweet, kind and quiet)

Graypaw (tom, large and muscular, gray and ginger, green eyes, rude and sexist)

Diamondpaw (she-cat, pure white with tiny light gray specks scattered sparsely, one blue eye and one green eye, stuck-up and haughty)

 **Queens (+ kits):**

Bloodshine (she-cat, dark ginger, dangerous green eyes, sexist, cold, and cruel)

 **Elders:**

Leopardnose (she-cat, dark brown tabby, black tail, soft green eyes, sweet, kind, and sympathetic)


	2. Chapter 2

**Rejection is nothing more than a necessary step in the pursuit of success.**  
 **\- Bo Bennett**

* * *

"Can't catch me!"

"Give it back!"

Minnowpaww grabbed desperately for the shriveled mouse that dangled from her sister's mouth. Diamondpaw looked at her scornfully, snorting in amusement. Minnowpaw slumped sadly next to Swanpaw, who was watching with interest.

"Need me to help?" the white she-cat purred at Minnowpaw. "I can reach Diamondpaw more easily than you can."

Although Swanpaw didn't mean to be rude, Minnowpaw's stomach sank. She didn't _want_ to be tiny, and it had always been a teasing spot with her littermates. Swanpaw seemed to sense what she had done, and she flattened her ears in embarrassment.

"Sorry."

Minnowpaw shrugged her silver shoulders. "It's fine."

Her stomach growled, and she glanced at the mouse hungrily. She resented relying on the puniest mouse just because Diamondpaw wouldn't let her eat any other fresh-kill. Minnowpaw couldn't even eat old prey in peace, with Diamondpaw stealing everything she wanted.

Their brother, Graypaw, always backed Diamondpaw up, because she was always in charge. Even their parents, Watershade and Bloodshine - _who names their kit Bloodkit, anyway?_ \- fully supported Diamondpaw. Beautiful in every physical way, nothing could hurt Diamondpaw without the Clan going overboard in revenge. It seemed to Minnowpaw that she was the only one who saw past her sister's looks, deep down to her ugly personality.

"Don't let her get to you," Swanpaw advised. "It'll only make it worse."

"I know," Minnowpaw sighed sadly.

Swanpaw tipped her head, deep in thought. "You know, I was saving it for later, but - here."

She stood up, and Minnowpaw's eyes almost popped out of their sockets as Swanpaw revealed a juicy vole that had been hidden under her huge, fluffy pelt. Minnowpaw pulled it closer, eating it with quick, ravishing bites. Swanpaw kept watch as she was eating, nudging her when any of Minnowpaw's family came close.

"Graypaw," the white apprentice muttered, slinking toward her. "He's with Watershade."

Minnowpaw nodded, quickly finishing the vole before standing up. "Thanks, Swanpaw. I'm going to go hunting."

Swanpaw's eyes widened, revealing twin amber moons. "But you don't have a mentor! Oakstar said you have to be a queen for your entire life!"

"I know," Minnowpaw meowed easily. "That's why I'm going to hunt."

Her friend hesitated, but nodded after a few seconds. "All right. Don't get killed."

Minnowpaw grinned, nodding and running toward the thorn barrier. She burst through, ignoring a cry from Deerstream as she fled toward the river. _Got to get away, got to get away..._ Her paws carried her past trees and ferns, finally coming to a stop at the muddy riverbank. She took a few deep breaths before taking the fishing position. She crouched silently, her claws digging into the ground. She saw a fish swish by, and without thinking, she lunged for it.

She screeched as she landed in the water, and immediately tried to swim for the bank. She barely noticed she was heading for the wrong side - the side that was past the border - until she had clawed her way up to the grass. She stared in dismay at her territory, wondering what to do.

But yet, as Minnowpaw stared at the rushing river, a new choice came to her for the first time: Leave.

She could leave WillowClan.

Forever.

Away from Diamondpaw, and Graypaw, and Bloodshine, and Watershade, and Oakstar, and every other cat in WillowClan she hated.

Forever.

And as she stared at the river, almost hypnotized by the pattern of the swirling water, it became clear what she must do. Slowly, Minnowpaw turned and walked into the rogue woods.


	3. Chapter 3

**Not all those who wander are lost**

 **\- J. R. R. Tolkien**

* * *

But Minnowpaw was.

She had no idea where she was. She hadn't smelled one familiar scent all day, and the forest she was in looked nothing like the territory back home.

 _No. Not home._

She shook her head, trying to convince herself that WillowClan wasn't her home, had never been her home, would never be her home.

Was it?

Minnowpaw yelped as her paw caught on a root, and she sprawled in the dirt. She lifted her head, spitting out bits of dirt. She was staring at the ground when she suddenly noticed a pile of fox dung. After further inspection, it was clear that it was fresh - less than a day old. She inhaled slowly, rising quickly to her paws and looking with wide eyes all around her. She seemed to expect a fox to jump out at any moment, and she wanted to be ready.

She realized she didn't know how to fight. She had never been taught, after all. A rush of hate for WillowClan rose in her throat, and she desperately wished she could hunt and fight like a real warrior. She sighed, figuring she wouldn't be able to eat until she taught herself to hunt.

 _Oh, StarClan, why did I have to be the queen of the litter?_

She pictured Diamondpaw, who had caught a crow and a squirrel on her first hunt. On that day, Minnowpaw had been pronounced the queen of the litter. She had been given no mentor.

 _After all, why would a queen need to fight? Only to protect her kits. But Oakstar would argue that the warriors could defend the kits well enough, and WillowClan has to back up the leader._

Minnowpaw sighed again, but she froze halfway.

A stick had cracked.

"Hello?" she whispered, her voice shaking.

 _The fox. It's stalking me. It's going to_ kill _me._

She turned around to see two amber eyes staring at her. Those eyes were set into a dark russet face, a face that had a long snout. An animal that stunk.

Minnowpaw had never seen or smelled one before, but she knew what this was.

A fox.

It snarled once, and leaped.


	4. Chapter 4

**Willow is alive! She messaged me saying that she had quit due to stress. She is perfectly fine. I will continue to write the story, but I wanted you all to know that she was okay.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi! Sorry I haven't been posting new chapters, I've been pretty busy. This chapter is a short one, but longer ones will be soon. Probably.**

* * *

 **Do more of what makes you happy**

 **-Unknown**

* * *

Minnowpaw gave a loud screech and ran, yowling at the top of her lungs in hope that someone would rescue her.

The forest seemed to want to kill her, with all the branches in her way. _Oh StarClan, why did I ever leave?_ She wondered desperately, knowing that she had no choice.

A claw caught her, and she faceplanted in the dirt as the fox took its time catching up to her. She shrieked as sharp teeth dug into her back, and she went limp as she was tossed in the air. She was winded by the time she landed with a thump in the grass, not having enough time to run away. She winced as she tried to get to her paws, but the fox was there and it attacked her before she could regain her bearings. She felt as if her fur were being ripped off, and as she tried feebly to claw at the fox's muzzle, it was always right out of reach.

Minnowpaw felt her strength giving out, not that she had much anyway. She struggled as hard as she could, but eventually her muscles gave out and she was left hanging limply in the fox's jaws as it tortured her by digging its teeth into her fur bit by bit.

She was barely conscious when she felt the fox release her, letting the blood flow freely around her. Minnowpaw's normally gray fur was becoming soaked with blood, and she felt her exhaustion holding her paws down.

 _Help..._ she thought faintly, her eyes closing.

The last thing she saw before everything went black was a small, black shape, flitting in front of her...


End file.
